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Note: if OP is a senior, this, in my opinion, is WAY TOO LATE for parents to be telling a kid for the first time what they are willing and able to pay toward college. This should be done, at the latest, in the middle of junior year when lists begin to form and visits begin to be made. Parents, do this before your kids make assumptions based on your income or wealth.
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I agree. The student has LONG been looking at colleges. Unless the student was keeping all the searches and college names to herself, the parents should have known that cost would be an issue…and should have stated such a long time ago.
We don’t know the parents’ situation…maybe new business success? maybe mom returned to work and really bumped the income? maybe a promotion? As someone else suggested, maybe they’re supporting relatives/grandparents. Maybe they have another child that will need life-long support? Maybe they have several children to put thru college?
Indiana has only a 3.3% state tax rate, which is super low, and does result in total of $100k ish of tax. But each county also imposes a tax of anywhere from 1 to over 3%, adding up to another $10k to the bill. Online tax calculators are not terribly accurate. Even at $110, they have 215 left. But what else they have to pay for is unknown.
I generally revert to 50% bc between fed/state/medi/ssa and the deductions they take from you for insurances, retirement and the like, high earners tend to end up with a net 50% or so.
@gigglebot3: I’m going to play devil’s advocate here. I’m generally in favor of taking finances seriously into consideration (I’ve just spent 30mn writing something on that very topic! ) but 20K is a bit arbitrary.Certainly he understands the concept of “value” - not just “cheap”, but “best value for the money”. Sometimes, the cheapest isn’t the best value. A cheap degree that doesn’t get you where you need to go has less value than a one-time more expensive one that you can afford and will help you get where you need to do.
if you are three in college at a “meet need” college, you will not qualify for financial aid the first year but when your siblings enroll at a 4-year college, the “meet need” college will reconsider your need. Run the NPCs on some of your colleges with 1 in college then 2 in college then 3 in college. If they’re still too expensive, well, goodbye to them. But check it out first.
An issue is that your dad attended Kelley, not just IU.
There are benefits to attending a really good program in your field. He, himself, is a testament to that. If he’d lived in Iowa instead, would it have been as goodto attend Iowa State vs. Kelley? Surely he can’t say it would have. Kelley is at the top of his professional field. Both universities are good but one clearly has a better program for one specific major. The problem is that the top of your professional field isn’t in Indiana. IU is quite good for languages and you’re not too badly off, but in order to work in that field you WILL need a degree from one of a few universities. It’s like IB - your dad may understand that: Kelley students who make it into the IB workshop are in a very different situation to get into IB than students who are just in the general business major. The latter, if they really want to work in IB, need to get into a top 7/14 MBA program.
Would he make the amount at least the equivalent of an instate public COA (23K)? If you earn significant scholarships but not full tuition, will he reconsider?
Nevertheless, I applaud your maturity. It sounds like you’re going to cast a wide net. I’m impressed by your ability to redraft your list. I know it must have been very hard.
Look into Bryn Mawr, Goucher, American U. The women’s colleges in general. I don’t know how well Hobart&William Smith Colleges do. Think about Howard.
OP, is your Dad amenable to help finance your graduate degree related to the IR field at say, Georgetown University? A graduate degree from a highly ranked “prestigious” program tends to overshadow one’s undergraduate institution which might be much lower ranked. I think you stated elsewhere that you plan on going on to grad school in the future. A graduate degree can be completed in 1 to 1.5 years, post Bachelors.
@Jamrock411 Yes, I am planning on grad school. That´s part of the reason why he is only giving so much for undergrad. I´m assuming I will finance grad school with a combination of summer work money and a little help for them. Is it still possible to get into an IR grad school like Tufts or Georgetown with an undergrad degree from Alabama or IU?
“Especially if the $325,000/year income was providing a luxurious lifestyle without apparent cost constraints up to now, and college is the first time that the OP has to face the possibility of something being too expensive.”
Why would you think that families living on $325,000 don’t have apparent cost constraints? Families at that level are living very nice lifestyles, of course, but they aren’t living “luxurious” lifestyles of house-in-the-Hamptons, first-class-to-European-skiing-over-spring-break, luxury-car-when-you-turn-16, boatloads-of-household-help, anything-you-ask-for-you-get. Of course they have constraints. They are just higher than that of the average family, that’s all. UCb, you continue to have this weird conception of “rich people” that they just spend willy-nilly on whatever they like.
I’m on the dad’s side. He set a budget, it is doable. Public schools available are good (if not excellent). Some people have a lot of money because they spend it wisely. I bet if OP got into a school she wants to attend and can justify more help from the parents or taking a loan, and showed the father the plan, he’d consider it. I know a lot of students at the State U who could have gone full pay to any priced university but like the value they are getting at the state U.
UCB is the one who started the thread that parents stabbed themselves in the back for living in a high cost
housing. There is a reason for the high price housing. Safety, better public school. That doesn’t mean they stabbed themselves or being wasteful. It’s mean they are reasonable parents.
@gigglebot3: Absolutely! Get into the Honors Program. Do amazing things. Become fluent in a “critical” language. Become fluent in another language. Get a certificate or a minor in a technical skill. Get involved. Do research. Including abroad.
And getting a grad degree from G’Town or Tufts is MUCH more important than where you got your undergrad degree. Undergrad only matters (even if that field) if you stop there.
However, select your college carefully. Your flagship’s honors program is great. Alabama Honors is great too (allegedly better according to http://publicuniversityhonors.com/, the book related to which you should familiarize yourself with). Research which honors college deliver both substantial scholarships and high-quality offerings.
I’m on the dad’s side if he’s being prudent, but against him if he’s being cheap. You have to know a lot of facts before you can tell which it is, but OP seems to think he’s being prudent, so that’s good enough for me.
The dad probably has figured that his three kids will still need help in grad school.
We have a tendency to think that we’re only going to help with undergrad, but many are having to help or pay for grad school.
With 3 kids, this family could be facing 15 more years of paying for various school expenses and personal expenses.
<<< @gigglebot3: Absolutely! Get into the Honors Program. Do amazing things. Become fluent in a “critical” language. Become fluent in another language. Get a certificate or a minor in a technical skill. Get involved. Do research. Including abroad.
And getting a grad degree from G’Town or Tufts is MUCH more important than where you got your undergrad degree. Undergrad only matters (even if that field) if you stop there.
However, select your college carefully. Your flagship’s honors program is great. Alabama Honors is great too (allegedly better according to http://publicuniversityhonors.com/, the book related to which you should familiarize yourself with). Research which honors college deliver both substantial scholarships and high-quality offerings.
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exactly! Are you someone who learns languages pretty easily? If so, take advantage of that. I know that some schools offer a good number of FL’s as majors and minors. What languages interest you?
and yes to study abroad! where would you like to go?
@mom2coIIegekids Yes, I love language and I love different cultures. I’m in my fifth year of Spanish right now, hoping to continue that to fluency during college and pick up another language, too. (Not sure yet, leaning towards Farsi because of its necessity) I intend to have some special concentration in Latin American studies, too, probably studying abroad in Central America. Very helpful and great advice, @MYOS1634 , thanks so much! I remember telling myself and others a year ago that I would just go cost-effective for undergrad at IU and then spend money on prestige for grad school, I think I just got caught up with all of the brand names of all the top-tier schools. I am really looking at Alabama and Ohio State very seriously now, especially considering that depending on what IU offers me, Alabama might even be cheaper. It’d be very cool to go someplace different from where all of my peers are going, especially if the cost is equivalent or cheaper! Plus, if I can get through undergrad paying way less than $80,000 or $90,000 (considering the full tuition and possible full ride at IU), I will have the money left over for grad school. Thank you for your help, I feel so much better about all of this now!
^@Madison85: many Honors colleges have Study Abroad Scholarships and/or stipends for research (including abroad).
For IR, study abroad is a must. It’s the equivalent of math for engineering majors - you will go nowhere without it, better change majors if you don’t/can’t/won’t make it a key part of your college work.
Someone suggested trying the NPCs with 2 kids and 3kids at one time. I doubt there would be aid with 2 kids, but maybe some with 3 (not likely enough to get cost down to 20k for that one year with no loans)… but that won’t solve this issue. The dad isn’t going to agree to pay a LOT more for 4-6 years, just to get a discount for one year when 3 are in college. The man is a CPA…he can do the math.
There is no scenario besides everyone going to HYPS where 3 in college at the same time “might” have a family contribution of $20k per child…but I doubt it.
Another thing that is an issue at “full need schools” is that the ones she’s looking at put loans in the FA pkgs. So, even if there was “some aid” with 3 in college, that aid would include loans…which dad won’t agree to.
Someone with a $325k income (plus a business that has value and deductions) is going to have a very high EFC, especially if using CSS Profile/
@DrGoogle you are right. The old “your don’t have to live in that neighborhood” argument. Where we live, it is a matter of safety. And living in a district where you can send kids to public school. Otherwise private tuition will wipe out any savings. we’re not in Kansas anymore Toto.
^I agree. I’m the one who made the “run the NPCs” suggestion, because I don’t think any stone should be left unturned.
But overall, Honors College + big IR grad school is the way to go for gigglebot.
@gigglebot3: Look at Miami Ohio too. When you go visit tOSU, go visit this college too. If you can live in the Honors dorm, or the “1st year research” floor, or the Healthy Living floor, it’s really very worth it. (It’s got excellent teaching, a great campus, great academics. Its main downsides are its alcohol-fueled parties that invade the dorms even more than at tOSu.)
If you retake the ACT and score higher, you may have a shot at Pitt’s Honors College, too. Pittsburgh is a great city for college students.
For your stats you could have full tuition and two $4,000 stipends for study abroad/internships from Temple, but coming from Indiana, North Philly may be too much of a shock.
I would also recommend Croft’s Institute for International Studies but Ole Miss is, too, a cultural shock of another sort for a Miswestern kid, so you have to take this into account. The Croft is top-notch though. http://www.croft.olemiss.edu/home/
ASU Barrett is one of the top Honors Colleges nationally and I’ve heard that they’re quite generous with merit aid. You get good weather, your own “Honors” campus, lots of honors classes/sections to choose from.
I already listed AU (SIS?) and Goucher, I think. I don’t think you’d be competitive for the Banneker at UMD-CP, but it’s worth trying, since it’s just a metroride to DC.
Are you a NMSF?
@MYOS1634 Unfortunately, I am not NMSF just Commended. I will still look into Temple, because although I am midwest (though I will say, Indianapolis is not the same thing as the rest of Indiana ) I did enjoy a weeklong program at Villanova which was full of Philly/Jersey/Boston kids. Once we got past sucker/lollipop and hoagie/sub, it was smooth sailing. Does Ole Miss give as much aid as Alabama would? I receive a lot of mail from Miami of Ohio (including the ACT+GPA=scholarship$$ table) but hadn’t thought much of it. I’ll look into it more!
Hm, well, Villanova is a posh suburb that’s not representative of Philly intra muros, and definitely nothing like Temple. Temple and North Philly are the opposite of Villanova and its area. Think Desperate Housewives vs. The Wire (not sure if that makes sense to you or if it’s too dated.) I think it’s so totally different there was a “Cold Case” episode that centered on two teenagers who’d died on the same day in Philly, one from each neighborhood, as a way to contrast the “worlds apart”. (Season 4 episode 14).
In a nutshell, Temple’s campus is urban but nice, its security is pretty good, and it’s close to the center of a really cool city for students, but it’s located in a gritty neighborhood and an infamous “ghetto”.
) but 20K is a bit arbitrary.Certainly he understands the concept of “value” - not just “cheap”, but “best value for the money”. Sometimes, the cheapest isn’t the best value. A cheap degree that doesn’t get you where you need to go has less value than a one-time more expensive one that you can afford and will help you get where you need to do.
) I did enjoy a weeklong program at Villanova which was full of Philly/Jersey/Boston kids. Once we got past sucker/lollipop and hoagie/sub, it was smooth sailing.